The original Chinese word for "river" was 水, literally "water". In time, the proper name 河 was used as a word for rivers and its original bearer distinguished as the 黄河 ("Yellow River"). Similarly, 江 was originally the name of the YangtzeRiver and then applied broadly as a generic word for rivers. In modern Chinese, 江 are usually the larger rivers, 河 are smaller rivers or creeks, and 水 are brooks and streams; but there are many exceptions to this general pattern owing to historical reasons.